Several enclosure systems are known which protect "outside plant" telecommunications equipment. Outside plant telecommunications equipment or products comprise that portion of a telecommunications equipment network which is located outdoors of buildings which are served by the network. Typical outside plant products include telephone poles and the above-ground wires, cables, connections equipment and signal processing equipment supported thereby. By contrast, "inside plant" is that portion of the telecommunications equipment network located indoors of the buildings served by the network.
Oftentimes outside plant products may be disposed entirely or substantially entirely underground. Certain sites on the outside plant network commonly known as "feeders" or "feeds" link the outside plant with the inside plant. A typical feed may include, without limitation, cables, cable terminations and electronics for converting electrical or optical signals carried by the outside plant into electrical signals which are compatible with the indoor plant equipment.
Existing feeds include box-like enclosures which house the feed electronics. The feed boxes may be deployed on pedestals, poles, or stands, or they may be buried as underground vaults.
The power densities of outside plant equipment are generally quite high and generate a great deal of heat which necessitates that the electronics be housed in a relatively stable and cool environment for proper operation. As such, feed boxes located above ground may require expensive cooling or other temperature stabilization measures when used in particularly sunny climates or other areas prone to relatively high temperatures. Furthermore, aboveground feed boxes are susceptible to vandalism, vehicular and environmental damage.
Underground feed boxes are less susceptible to vandalism and vehicular damage and provide cooler and more stable thermal environments for the enclosed electronics. However, the electronics of existing underground boxes are not themselves sealed. The electronics are therefore vulnerable to water seepage through the feed boxes which are routinely exposed to high levels of ground moisture. And, in instances of flooding, underground feed boxes may be submerged for long periods of time.
When maintenance is required, it is sometimes difficult to locate an underground box. Additionally, in many instances, it is difficult if not impossible for a worker to service the feed electronics when stored underground. In such case, it is necessary to dig up the box and raise it to the ground surface which could result in damage to the box and/or the connecting cables leading to and from the box.
In typical installations of aboveground or underground feed boxes, a trench is dug in which the cable leading to the electronics is installed. A backhoe then digs a hole for the underground feed box or for installing the aboveground feed box pedestal foundation. In the case of underground installations, the cables previously laid in the trench are run through the box and connected to the appropriate connectors or terminations in the box. The box is then placed into the ditch and covered with dirt. In the case of aboveground installations, the pedestal is built, the cables are run up through the pedestal, and the electronics-containing feed box is installed on the pedestal with the cable running through the box and connected to appropriate connectors within the box.
Additionally, the substantially square shape of existing underground feed boxes render it somewhat difficult to effectively seal a lid to the box. Further, when lowering the box into the ground, the cables leading to the box may become bound or kinked under the box. This may detrimentally affect the signal transmission performance of the cable and possible require removal and reinstallation of the box. Moreover, the orientations of the electronics in underground feed boxes and similar outside plant enclosures is not standardized. The electronics are unsealed and typically disposed horizontally in the box. Since cables may enter several sides of the box, expensive cable fittings or other sealing measures must be taken to avoid water ingress.